He once had hope
by Orangesocks69
Summary: There were two winners of the hunger games from district twelve, but what if the 2nd was after Haymitch, not before?


It had always been a challenge, staying out of everyone's way; when all I seemed to do was get _in _the way. I was that weird child, the one who went against the grain, and never mind how much they tried to fit in, just didn't. That was me, Nikola Gamely. My father worked down the mines and my mother did washing for the people who could afford it. We lived in the seam in district twelve like all the other miners and their families, we were crowded together in little shacks they called houses. The only consolidation we had was that there were very few nice parts of district twelve...that they knew of. It was on my eighth birthday when I had the worst argument with my mother and clambered over the fence that bordered our district on my way to school. I only made it three feet into the wood; I sat down in the cool shade, in the quiet and peace and just grinned. As far as I was aware, no one had ever gone outside this fence and then I remembered why, it was usually powered. When I realised this I ran back, and before I knew what I was doing, I had clambered back over and had returned home. I looked frantically around. I couldn't lose this little piece of happiness I had found, I wouldn't, so I grabbed a shovel, one of my fathers and found a bush by the fence, and I started digging I hole, which I could escape through without being frazzled alive. I cut it pretty close, I had only just finished when I heard that little buzz telling everyone their future if they dared. District twelve was a poor district, and a small one. We were usually ignored by the Capitol, but there were three things we all had to abide too: it's okay to do illegal things to stay alive as long as the peacekeepers don't have it flaunted in their faces. Those in seam look after those in the seam, those higher up, look after those higher up. No one steps foot past the fence or they'll be punishable by death. I tried to forget about what I had done, but I found myself more and more frequently skipping school to leave the boundary and wander into the woods. It was obvious this place had never been touch by humans, even before the war. The day that changed my life was when I was watching the hunger games. I was ten, and the next year would be the first year I was entered. The previous years I could remember had been mountains, or water or fields, but this year there was a forest. I saw her, the blonde girl from district one, and I saw what she was holding, a bow. I decided then and there I was going to make one. I took me two years and several attempts, but I made my pride and joy and I loved it. By then I was entering my name for tesserie, my elder sister, Maree never did, we made do, my when I reached the age my mother made me, Maree was their favourite child, I was supposed to be a boy, to carry on the family, I would have been okay if my mother and father could have had children after me, but they couldn't, so I was always the disappointment. I began hunting, and learning the ways of the wood, picking berries I remember seeing round the village, and any I was unsure of I would leave. I didn't at first, I ate whatever the animals ate, but then I got food poisoning, and I didn't want to try anything new, I didn't want to risk it. I had a few species though; a few berries I was sure no one else knew about may be in the whole of Panem. I was happy and I was well fed, that's what did. I could never tell my parents, and I'm pretty sure they would have skinned me alive if they knew, but occasionally I brought some game to the hob, our black market, if I had enough money. It took me months to pluck up the courage to go, and when I did, all the men and woman who traded there stood and stared, it took them a few minutes to put two and two together when they saw the deer hanging over my shoulder, then they started an auction, I put a little into my family account, not enough to notice, mostly I saved, or bought a new weapon to use in the woods. The worst part about the Hob is that it moved week to week, there was nowhere to hold it, so it went from scraps of land to another scrap of land, keeping track of the movement was hard enough. I thought people might start coming to the woods and was a little worried that my little sanctuary would be ruined. No one did though and when I asked, people just said they didn't have the guts. It took me a few weeks to notice people weren't afraid of what would happen when they returned to the woods, but what would happen when they were there. The woods were dangerous, a few times I've been chased by a predator, but you just climb a tree and wait until they get board, and then you're fine. I maybe someone the hob liked to have around, they got a little more meat, or my parents could use for tesserie, but no one wanted me there, no one needed me, and left me alone, and bitter and empty. Which is why, when I was sixteen and I stood waiting in the queue for the reaping's of the hunger games, and they called out my sisters name, I volunteered. I was younger than her sure, but I was probably better equipped to deal with that world than she was. If I didn't return, it was a little sad; if she didn't return then it was going to be a tragedy. No one in Panem may love me, but I loved my sister, dearly, she was the only person that saw me and she was just good. I remember the look on Cygnus Alanis's face even now, the shock. Everyone was in shock, not in all the 51 years of the hunger games had this ever happened, no one form twelve ever volunteered. I did, but I guess I never really belonged.

"Pardon?" asked Cygnus from the stage. My sister was stood in the middle of the walkway, watching me, tears running down her face, not for me, but for what she owed me. There weren't going to be any tears for me today. There was a look in everyone's eye around the square I didn't expect though, respect. I softly made my way the walk way where I was grabbed by some peace keepers and I stopped,

"I volunteered didn't I? I not going to run away" I told them and they backed away from me. I walked past my sister, giving her a nod on my way and continued to the stage.

"What's your name?" asked Cygnus smiling. I didn't smile back,

"Nikola Gamely" I replied through dried lips. I saw the light bulb click on,

"Was that your sister?" she asked and I nodded,

"She too good for this" I told the audience and everyone nodded in agreement. Then they did something that no one had done in years, the district twelve's sign of gratitude and respect, middle three fingers to the lips and then the sky, usually used at funerals, I was being sent to my death.

"Hadrian Clarke" he called. I knew the boy, his father was also a coal miner, he was lame though, a bad leg. I felt bad for him, I also felt bad for feeling good that it was one less person to worry about, I would place bets he would die on the first day. That was it, the 52nd hunger games were about to begin. We were ushered inside the justice building, just like every tribute before us had; only two had ever come back, they were not good odds, but then nothing was in this world. I thought about my bow in the woods, wrapped in waterproof wrapping and tucked in the hollow of a tree. I might stay there forever; no one else enters into the woods. It would be a piece of untouched history. One day, maybe when the Capitol isn't ruling our world, someone will find it, and I would have left my mark on the world. That thought made me smile. We were allowed visitors before we left, in fact we were allowed four groups of visitors. My family were ushered in. We all stood there in silence, my mother peered round the room,

"This is very nice" she commented and I followed her gaze, there were rich curtains, wallpapers which looked more like art, chairs and tables of the finest wood and fabric. It disgusted me, because it just reinforced, people were only nice when they wanted something, expect this wasn't a little favour, or a squirrel, this was giving my life for entertainment. My parents left without a goodbye, probably kidding themselves it would make things easier. My sister stayed for a second,

"Thank you Nikola, I'll miss you" she said before turning to leave. I sat down in a chair, ready to wait, but another knock came at the door. I lifted my head as the door opened. Pirry Everdeen stood in the door way. I knew of him, he was two years younger than me at school, but I didn't _know _him.

"Yes?" I asked, un sure why he was here. He took a step forward,

"I want to start going in the woods, can I have your bow?" he asked. I had to laugh, it was actually quite funny,

"Sure, there's a hollow under the bush by the meadow, in the first Geiger tree you come across it's in the trunk, it's hollow" I explained and he nodded, "Good luck" I added and he turned and smiled to me,

"You too" and he walked away. I was happy, I probably wouldn't have been if he had decided to hunt there while I was in district twelve, but I was leaving, and at least one seam family would be well fed in the district.


End file.
